Does being overweight increase risk of cancer recurrence or getting another cancer?
More and more evidence suggests that being overweight raises the risk for recurrence and reduces the odds of survival for many cancers. Increased body weight has been linked with higher death rates for all cancers combined. It has also been linked with increased risk for cancers of the esophagus, colon and rectum, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, kidney, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple myeloma, as well as to cancers of the stomach and prostate in men and cancers of the breast, uterus, cervix, and ovary in women. Because of other proven health benefits to losing weight, people who are overweight are encouraged to lose weight and maintain a healthy weight. Avoiding weight gain as an adult is important not only to reduce cancer incidence and risk of recurrence, but the risk of other chronic diseases as well.
